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Astral
The astral is of, connected with, or resembling the stars. It can also mean of or relating to a supposed nonphysical realm of existence to which various psychic and paranormal phenomena are ascribed, and in which the physical body is said to have a counterpart.Google: Astral Definition Background Before life even began, before even the cosmos took shape, there was Light ... and Void. In the form of a boundless prismatic sea, the Light swelled across all existence. The ocean of Light was dynamic and ever shifting. Yet as it expanded, some of its energies faded and dimmed, leaving behind pockets of cold nothingness. From the absence of Light in these spaces, a new power coalesced and came to be. This power was the Void, a dark and vampiric force driven to devour all energy, to twist creation inward to feed upon itself. The Void quickly grew and spread its influence, moving against the waves of Light. The tension between these two opposing energies eventually ignited a series of explosions, rupturing the fabric of creation and birthing a new realm into existence. In that moment, the physical universe was born. The energies released by the clash of Light and Void raged across the cosmos, matter merging and spinning into worlds without number.World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 1, pg. 30-31 on iBooks An Astral Dimension of Chaos The most unstable energies coalesced into an astral dimension known as the Twisting Nether.World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 1, pg. 31 on iBooks The creatures that had emerged from this realm were known as demons. They had been formed as a result of the Light and Void energies that had bled together at the borders of the Twisting Nether. The demons embraced their furious passions and reveled in pushing the boundaries of their power, heedless of the consequences. Many of these aberrations indulged in the energy that pervaded the Nether. Some learned to wield the all-consuming powers of fel magic and, before long, the bloodthisty demons clawed their way into the physical universe, terrorizing mortal civilizations and bringing ruin to world after world.World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 1, pg. 38 on iBooks Astral Traveling Astral projection (or astral travel) is an interpretation of an out-of-body experience that assumes the existence of an "astral body" separate from the physical body and capable of travelling outside it. Astral projection or travel denotes the astral body leaving the physical body to travel in an astral plane. Ending the spell of astral travel can - or does - send a spirit hurtling through the Twisting Nether and thundering back into the body.World of Warcraft: Illidan, pg. 407 on iBooks Astral Form An astral form is a spirit that can take on a glutinous quality.World of Warcraft: Illidan, pg. 356 on iBooks Denizens of the Cosmos Ethereals Treading the chaotic spaces between worlds, the ethereals are astral travelers who dwell within the Twisting Nether.Ethereal Warp Stalkers Warp stalkers are crafty, predatory hunters indigenous to Draenor that have been corrupted by the Burning Legion. Some reports even suggest that Legion officers employ the stalkers as mounts, utilizing the creatures' uncanny abilities to phase in and out of the physical and astral dimensions at will. Unbound by the constraints of physical reality, these powerful, mystical creatures often range far and wide: almost no realm is out of reach.Warp Stalker Elune, the Moon Goddess Elune is the goddess of the moon. Her aspect as the Night Warrior takes the courageous dead from the field and sets them riding across the evening sky as stars for their reward.The Demon Soul, pg. 77 on iBooks Stars Stars are any of the heavenly bodies, except the moon, appearing as fixed luminous points in the sky at night. The Professions of the Cosmos Druids Mages Shamans Warlocks Speculation Are Demons Astral Spirits? "Within the Twisting Nether I discovered that the spirits of the dead do linger on, floating on the astral winds between the worlds." - The warlock Gul'danWarcraft II manual - The Rise of the Shadow Council File:Rulrin.jpg| File:Invoke the Nether.jpg| File:Curse of Doom.jpg| Unstable energies coalesced into the astral dimension known as the Twisting Nether. Because the Twisting Nether is just an astral coalition of astral, unstable energies that is separate from the physical universe, the Twisting Nether has no physical borders or boundaries. It is a non-physical place that transcends all realitiesAlex Afrasiabi on Twitter and is, essentially, not real. As such, demons - entities that transcend all realities because they're from the Twisting Nether — are not from reality and are, therefore, not "real". They are non-physical beings — disembodied spirits that warlocks can give constructed shells to — if they're from the Twisting Nether and claiming that the physical can exist inside the non-physical is akin to claiming that a rock can exist inside a ghost. Despite that fact, the Blizzard writer Matt Burns stated that he thinks there are physical stuff in the Twisting Nether after he was asked if demons are disembodied spirits that warlocks can give physical shells to.Matt Burns on Twitter Truth be told, he can't honestly believe that because the non-physical is separate from the physical. If the physical can exist inside the non-physical, it stands to reason that a physical being can possess a spirit as if it's a spirit. References See also * * * * * External links Category:Lore